DESCRIPTION: Curious World is a new subscription service from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Targeted for preschoolers ages 3-7, Curious World includes educational videos, games, and eBooks. Video are a mix of original productions and acquired content from all over the world. Parents create a profile on their child’s behalf, and Curious World curates customized recommendations for kids to play, read, and watch.
Curious World launched with over 1,200 unique titles, content is added on a weekly basis. The heavily curated content is selected based on a child’s age, giving kids a balanced diet of eight key learning areas. These learning areas include basic science, math, and literacy, as well as health and wellness, family and community, and social and emotional development.

Curious World combines the online and offline worlds. Kids are encouraged to participate in activities stimulated by selected videos. Learning is taken further beyond the screen with tips for parents on real-world learning activities for the whole family.

Parents can also check their child’s progress through the parent dashboard online or in the app, which is free to download. The app is currently available on IOS.

BRIDGE MULTIMEDIA

DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING: Bridge Multimedia is a New York City-based content services company dedicated to supporting all facets of universally accessible media for entertainment, educational, commercial, and government applications.

Accessible media uses state-of-the-art digital technology to provide greater accessibility to a variety of electronic media and multimedia entertainment. Bridge Multimedia is at the forefront of producing today’s universally accessible media and is setting the pace for the development of tomorrow’s innovations.

Bridge creates audio description that is directly aligned to national education standards and has become a leader in broadening the audience appeal for audio description to individuals on the autism spectrum by providing social/emotional cues within its description when appropriate..Bridge Multimedia is now the largest single provider of TV video description in the U.S. and was awarded its second five-year video description grant from the US Department of Education.

LKM’s role is to source educational children’s programming and secure commitments as part of US Department of Education video description grant. Nearly 2,000 episodes have been described under the first five-year grant. Bridge currently provides audio descriptions for more than 30 television series that are appearing on PBS, ABC, CBS, NBC Sprout, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, CNN, the CW, HBO.

PORTFOLIO ENTERTAINMENT

HEAD OF DISTRIBUTION: Portfolio Entertainment is one of Canada’s leading independent producers and distributors of award-winning children’s, factual, and lifestyle content. Responsibilities include heading global distribution. Portfolio’s distribution division, Portfolio International, represents over 2,000 episodes of children and factual programming. Its entrepreneurial approach to deal making, insight into market trends and commitment to exceptional service has benefited the numerous independent producers it represents. Networks worldwide look to Portfolio for both high quality programs and exceptional service.

Portfolio’s kids’ productions include the new animated comedy Freaktown, the highly acclaimed The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That! and Doki.

CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCERThis new short series is designed to expose preschoolers to foreign languages – and to get them singing along! Each jingle is simple, humorous and has an element of surprise. Each has playful repetition and encourages interaction. Jingle Bilingual Spanish/English videos are now available on HMH’s Curious World App. The attached link connects to the videos in English, Spanish, French and Mandarin. It also has the full presentation detailing the background and approach.

VIBRANT TV

PROGRAMMING CONSULTANT: Executive Advisor for strategy and program acquisitions for Vibrant TV. From Chicago-based Zephyr Media Group, Vibrant TV will be a full entertainment network with a mix of dramas, comedies, lifestyle, reality, sports and kids programming from international producers and broadcasters. Vibrant TV will showcase for the widest array of internationally produced programming for American audiences and a US platform for international producers.

ZeeQ

PROGRAMMING ACQUISITIONS CONSULTANT: India’s first edutainment channel. Responsibilities include strategic global acquisitions -for launch and ongoing- with analysis and recommendation by subject area; introductions to major kids’ edutainment producers/distributors; negotiations on behalf of Zee Learn; representation at major media conferences. Zee Learn – a part of the Essel Group, is one of the leading companies in education in India with the fastest growing chain of K-12 schools and India’s No. 1 chain of preschools.

AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN’S TELEVISION FOUNDATION

US SALES REPRESENTATIVE: The Australian Children’s Television Foundation has produced some of the best-loved children’s series in the world. ACTF programs have sold in over 100 countries and have won over 95 local and international awards. Its television series include hits such as My Place, Flea-bitten, Lockie Leonard, Mortified.

The ACTF is a non-profit organization that is committed to providing Australian children with entertaining media made especially for them, which makes an enduring contribution to their cultural and educational experience. The ACTF develops and produces high quality television programs for children that are innovative, entertaining and educational. These series reach kids all over the world.

PlaySquare

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANT: PlaySquare is developing tablet-based Touchable Television, a next generation of kid’s media for the touchscreen generation – which is to say a group that doesn’t know the world without touchscreen interaction. PlaySquare is designed for kids to be a part of a story narrative. When the episode begins, a child is able to become involved in the story by finding things, making things, helping the characters and moving the story along. It’s a seamless transition between the video and the interactive

GREEN DIVAS

The Green Divas brand is expanding to create an even stronger platform to help overwhelmed consumers filter the vast amount of green living content and merchandising opportunities available to them. New features for web, social media, radio/podcast syndication, apps, TV and books are in the works.

Biz Kid$

VERIA

EXECUTIVE ADVISOR, INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM SALES

Veria represents a revolution in lifestyle programming and is the first and only healthy lifestyle channel in the US. Produced in high definition, this 24/7 network features all original content devoted to natural wellness. Programs include food, fitness, travel, docs and reality series. It’s programming that’s entertaining, engaging, compelling, inspiring.

LKM created and implemented strategic global TV program sales plan to introduce Veria to international market and license network’s 26 original HD series worldwide. Plan included building MIPCOM 2010 presence, micro-site for program sales, ad campaign and sales materials. Introduced Veria to lifestyle buyers worldwide.

PUTUMAYO

Expanded Putumayo Kids multicultural world music brand into new media opportunities.

The MY HERO Project

The MY HERO Project was founded in 1995 by Karen Pritzker, Jeanne Meyers and Rita Stern as a response to the lack of positive role models in the media for children. This not-for-profit website was built on the belief that people of all ages from around the world would participate by sharing stories, art, and short films that illuminate heroes from all walks of life.

What began as a simple idea has now become a global learning community that bridges the digital divide, promotes peace and tolerance, and allows people around the globe to have their voices heard in a safe, commercial-free, child-friendly environment. This has been accomplished through building our multimedia journal and digital library, providing support for thousands of teachers who use project-based learning in their classrooms, and making media arts education available to those in underrepresented communities so all can take part in this award-winning project.

LKM’s role was to develop new funding sources and expand reach of a thriving website that celebrates heroes.

MAGNET MEDIA– Design Intervention

WORLDWIDE TELEVISION REPRESENTATION

Magnet Media is a production studio and interactive marketing services firm based in New York City, with satellite offices on the west coast. For the past 16 years, Magnet Media has worked with many of the world’s top brands, shooting original video and growing online communities around the globe.

Magnet Media specializes in reaching audiences through digital environments and believes that marketing and advertising are in their golden age. There have never been more opportunities to reach and connect with prospective customers than there are today, using online video, social networks, web communities and mobile devices. The challenge for marketers is not how to reach people, but how to reach the right people, in the right way, at the right time. That is Magnet Media’s expertise.

Design Intervention is a TV series that features Brian Collins, the Chief Creative Officer of Collins/The Martin Agency. Brian’s agency was honored as AdWeek’s 2009 Agency of the Year. Named one of the “Five American Masters of Design” by Fast Company magazine, Brian is the storyteller behind some of the world’s biggest brands, breathing new life and relevance into the Fortune 500 – Mattel, Dove, Kodak, Amex, IBM, Hershey… these are just a few of the many legendary businesses in which Brian has sparked new life and restored household names.

In Design Intervention, Brian is now taking his considerable talents and celebrity connections to the everyday business community. Design Intervention is a business makeover over from a modern day Mad Men. Each episode tells an inspiring turnaround story set in these challenging economic times. And it’s much more than a makeover show. Brian transforms the people and businesses in Design Intervention, taking personal stories and making them unforgettable brands.

INCHWORM MEDIA – Fig’s Farm

WORLDWIDE REPRESENTATION

Fig’s Farm is a live action reality series for preschoolers. This series of shorts (26 x 3 minutes) will follow the adventures, escapades and antics of a colorful collection of real animal characters – animals who live on a farm animal sanctuary – and their animated friend Fig. Each will be presented from the point of view of six-year old Fig who lives in the old farmhouse. The series is all about relationships.